Ashfaq Ul Mushfiq

Goalkeepers stealing everyone’s thunder

Argentina fans around the globe were expressing gratitude after Lionel Messi's last dance in the FIFA World Cup was extended by at least one more week following a 2-1 win over Australia in the Round of 16 on Saturday.

1y ago

Women footballers paint Dhaka Red and Green

Open top bus parades are conventional in Europe, where World Cup winners like Germany, Spain and Italy and Champions League giants like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and AC Milan have made such celebrations customary.

2y ago

Alfaz hopes 'this is only the beginning’

It was a cold, rainy evening at the Dasarath Rangasala in Kathmandu, but it was not only the weather that was conspiring against Bangladesh. There was also a hostile capacity crowd, cheering on hosts Nepal, but the women held their nerve and clinched their most significant milestone by winning a maiden SAFF Women's Championship title with a 3-1 victory in yesterday's final.

2y ago

‘Failure is very rare in Nikli’

Swimmer Karar Samedul Islam, a product of the Nikli Swimming Club, won one silver and three bronze medals in the 2004 SAF Games in Islamabad. Considered one of the best swimmers produced in Bangladesh, Samedul spoke about a journey that began at a club in Kishoreganj and shared the secrets of Nikli’s success while speaking to The Daily Star’s Ashfaq Ul Mushfiq.

2y ago

The long wait is over for shuttlers

Sport was halted by the Covid-19 pandemic and although some have already come out of that slumber, other disciplines are still trying to find their feet. Finally, after a patient three-year wait, the 37th edition of the National Badminton Championship is set to take the stage at the Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmed Indoor Stadium in Dhaka today.

2y ago

In sync despite being 5 thousand miles apart

The beautiful game has been the most popular sport on the planet for over a century, but although the field has been dominated by men for most of its history, times have begun to change in the last few decades.

2y ago

Beneath the surface of local strikers’ struggles

 “I have always said that scoring a goal is the best feeling in the world,” legendary English striker Alan Shearer once said. In football, where goals decide destinies, it is a striker’s role to deliver balls to the back of the net.

2y ago

Joty in awe of Mithali being a voracious reader

Indian women cricket team captain Mithali Raj announced her retirement from international cricket this Wednesday, drawing curtains on an illustrious career of 23 years during which she established herself as the country's greatest female batter. Many cricketers around the globe look up to Mithali's career and Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty is no different. 

2y ago
December 5, 2022
December 5, 2022

Goalkeepers stealing everyone’s thunder

Argentina fans around the globe were expressing gratitude after Lionel Messi's last dance in the FIFA World Cup was extended by at least one more week following a 2-1 win over Australia in the Round of 16 on Saturday.

September 22, 2022
September 22, 2022

Women footballers paint Dhaka Red and Green

Open top bus parades are conventional in Europe, where World Cup winners like Germany, Spain and Italy and Champions League giants like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and AC Milan have made such celebrations customary.

September 20, 2022
September 20, 2022

Alfaz hopes 'this is only the beginning’

It was a cold, rainy evening at the Dasarath Rangasala in Kathmandu, but it was not only the weather that was conspiring against Bangladesh. There was also a hostile capacity crowd, cheering on hosts Nepal, but the women held their nerve and clinched their most significant milestone by winning a maiden SAFF Women's Championship title with a 3-1 victory in yesterday's final.

September 17, 2022
September 17, 2022

‘Failure is very rare in Nikli’

Swimmer Karar Samedul Islam, a product of the Nikli Swimming Club, won one silver and three bronze medals in the 2004 SAF Games in Islamabad. Considered one of the best swimmers produced in Bangladesh, Samedul spoke about a journey that began at a club in Kishoreganj and shared the secrets of Nikli’s success while speaking to The Daily Star’s Ashfaq Ul Mushfiq.

July 24, 2022
July 24, 2022

The long wait is over for shuttlers

Sport was halted by the Covid-19 pandemic and although some have already come out of that slumber, other disciplines are still trying to find their feet. Finally, after a patient three-year wait, the 37th edition of the National Badminton Championship is set to take the stage at the Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmed Indoor Stadium in Dhaka today.

July 9, 2022
July 9, 2022

In sync despite being 5 thousand miles apart

The beautiful game has been the most popular sport on the planet for over a century, but although the field has been dominated by men for most of its history, times have begun to change in the last few decades.

June 18, 2022
June 18, 2022

Beneath the surface of local strikers’ struggles

 “I have always said that scoring a goal is the best feeling in the world,” legendary English striker Alan Shearer once said. In football, where goals decide destinies, it is a striker’s role to deliver balls to the back of the net.

June 9, 2022
June 9, 2022

Joty in awe of Mithali being a voracious reader

Indian women cricket team captain Mithali Raj announced her retirement from international cricket this Wednesday, drawing curtains on an illustrious career of 23 years during which she established herself as the country's greatest female batter. Many cricketers around the globe look up to Mithali's career and Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty is no different. 

May 30, 2022
May 30, 2022

Courtois ‘redemption’ disrupts hegemony of strikers

Ahead of the biggest night of European club football, numerous tactical analysis, speculations and predictions were made on how the match between Liverpool and Real Madrid would play out. In football, a game where goals define the result, marksmen like Karim Benzema, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Vinicius Jr. predictably garnered the  most attention on the occasion.

May 28, 2022
May 28, 2022

It’s tough, but I made it, want to go further: Boxer Sura Krishna

In pursuit of his passion from a very young age, boxer Sura Krishna Chakma made headlines around Bangladesh as he was crowned champion in the lightweight division of the recently-concluded ‘Xcel presents South Asian Pro Boxing Fight Night - The Ultimate Glory’, the first international professional boxing tournament held in the country earlier this week.